CRITFC Staff

Andrew Matala

Conservation Geneticist

Fishery Science Department, Hagerman Genetics Lab

Biography

I began my professional career with the USFWS as a geneticist at Abernathy Fish Technology Center in Longview, Washington. There I took on the role of steelhead trout coordinator, managing projects throughout the Columbia River Basin, California, and elsewhere in collaboration with many Tribal, state and federal agencies. My primary focus was on the monitoring of hatchery-wild interactions, real time genetic characterization of broodstocks, and evaluating population structure and genetic diversity. I began working for CRITFC in October of 2008 at the Hagerman Idaho Fish Culture Experiment Station. My duties as a conservation geneticist for CRITFC are primarily in a support role to assist our member tribes in fisheries management, supplementation and conservation pursuits. My primary duty is to coordinate and facilitate construction of genetic baselines for steelhead trout, Chinook salmon and sockeye salmon. The baselines are the foundation for CRITFC’s basin-wide genetic stock identification (GSI) projects. Additionally, I am the lead geneticist on a variety of collaborative projects including: GSI of kelt steelhead at Lower Granite Dam, steelhead trout and Chinook salmon pedigree studies, and genetic assessment of white sturgeon populations in the Middle Columbia River. Outside of work I enjoy spending time with my two daughters and my wife (whom I also work with at CRITFC), home brewing, gardening, cheering on the Boise State Broncos, and hopefully one day soon I’ll revisit my appreciation of bow hunting for elk.

Policy & Education

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CRITFC
Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish CommissionOur mission is to ensure a unified tribal voice in the management of Columbia River basin fishery resources and to protect the reserved treaty fishing rights of our member tribes.